No we’ll invite other countries that were shut out of the elitist World Cup. Like Andorra, and San Marino, and Vatican City. And any other country too small to actually field a competitive team. It will be totally fair. TOTALLY!!

They’re part of Denmark; we only want countries recognized as such by Wikipedia. We will, in that context, invite the Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands, St Kitts & Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Maldives, and of course Fiji, Vanuatu, Tuvalu, Palau, and Kiribati.

Seriously I don’t quite know what’s so bad about the idea. They want some TV revenue which has been dashed by their team (and others like Italy) not making it.

If they tout it as some kind of ‘real world cup’ after failing to qualify out of their group then it is embarrassing but if they want a secondary tournament for a bit of fun then I think that’s okay. The article seems overly harsh and presumptive considering it’s just a basic idea at the moment.

What was FOX thinking, that America would make the finals? I find it very funny.

They should make the finals though. They are in the most piss easy global conference with Mexico being a good team and all the rest are pretty much minnows. Their performance this time was pathetic, USA have never been world beaters but I remember them beating some big guns over the years, including England, now they couldn’t beat Hunduras or Trinidad and Tobago.

Either way it is always a bit of a gamble and Fox lost their bet to the tune of $200m. It won’t help them either that Italy and Ireland went out at the play-offs.

What was FOX thinking, that America would make the finals? I find it very funny.

They should make the finals though. They are in the most piss easy global conference with Mexico being a good team and all the rest are pretty much minnows. Their performance this time was pathetic, USA have never been world beaters but I remember them beating some big guns over the years, including England, now they couldn’t beat Hunduras or Trinidad and Tobago.

Either way it is always a bit of a gamble and Fox lost their bet to the tune of $200m. It won’t help them either that Italy and Ireland went out at the play-offs.

Sorry, I wasn’t clear, I meant the World Cup itself not just the qualifiers.

EDIT: And there’s still going to be a lot of people in the US watching it. I think most Americans who were predisposed to be interested in the World Cup are realistic about America’s chances in it.

I guess the US’s involvement would rope in a lot of casual fans here, particularly if the team went on a bit of a run, but all of the games will be on in the middle of the night or first thing in the morning here…so…I dunno.

And there’s still going to be a lot of people in the US watching it. I think most Americans who were predisposed to be interested in the World Cup are realistic about America’s chances in it.

There will be, there’s the general fans of the game and as an immigrant nation fans of other countries. However I think they may have calculated that into the losses as they don’t include all the money they spent.

A quick Google showed that in the 2014 World Cup the TV ratings averaged 4.3m viewers but the USA v Portugal game was 24.7m, so around 5 times as many people will watch the national team play.

Researchers confirm the first identifciation of the degenerative brain disease CTE in a living person, previously only determined wiht a brain exam after death.

Omalu said he and his team are currently raising money to start a phase 3 clinical trial to further test the technology and replicate what they have seen in McNeill. He anticipates that once funds are raised, it will take another two to three years for the trial and then another year, at least, for approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. When asked, how soon a commercial test could be available, Omalu predicted it could be as soon as a few years. “We are looking at less than five years,” he said.

If diagnosing CTE in living people can be done, this will completely change sports.

Insurance and liability requirements are going to change. Testing may be required prior to playing full contact and combat sports. Getting tested may become a condition of certain athletic scholarships. People may no longer be allowed to play.

Getting tested may become a condition of certain athletic scholarships. People may no longer be allowed to play.

Which may well be a mistake. Over a long time all kinds of occupations have risks, people using keyboard frequently can get repetitive strain injury, even carpal tunnel. Sedentary positions like that, that force you to sit all day contribute to obesity and a rise in diabetes and heart disease.

A lot of work can be done to reduce risk, I personally see the head first tackles in NFL are not necessary for a good game, but life is risk. The sports with the highest death rate are anything involving horse riding. Do we ban horse riding? It may be, the US is a country that enshrines the right to own a gun but has a ban on Kinder Surprise and haggis.

There isn’t a ban on Kinder Surprise - there’s loads of wee egg chocolates. I think there’s a restriction on how small the parts can be.

As for CTE, I can’t see players giving up millions a year with a diagnosis. The game will have to change instead. Given just how many injuries there are, given this year so many huge stars are out, it’s time to wussify football and make it more about the skills and less about the hits.